The South Pole of Mars | NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter

The South Pole of Mars | NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter

Semper gelidus in Latin can be best translated as “always cold” or “always icy.” We are looking at a scene of the South Polar residual cap of Mars. It is termed that because of the persistence of ice even after the season changes. This is all carbon dioxide ice at this location.

The expansion and contraction of underground ice, along with the process of sublimation (when a solid transforms directly into a gaseous state) contribute to the weird and interesting patterns that we see here.

This is a non-narrated clip with ambient sound. The image is less than 5 km (3 mi) across and the spacecraft altitude was 245 km (152 mi). 

Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UArizona

Duration: 3 minutes, 32 seconds

Release Date: Dec. 6, 2022

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